Most homes, and even small businesses, do not have apparatus for efficiently unstopping or cleaning a blocked or slow running sink drain, especially when the blockage occurs in the pipes downstream from the sink. Generally the operator must rely on rubber plunger devices, which uses a brief pressure surge to try to dislodge a blockage, a small flexible wire or "snake" to mechanically cut through a blockage, or caustic and environmentally dangerous chemicals. Any such method may be so laborious, time consuming, or dangerous both to the operator and to the environment that often it is better to disassemble as much of the plumbing as is reachable and attempt to manually clean it out. However, all these methods are less effective, and often futile, if the blockage is distant from the drain opening at the sink. The pressure surge from a plunger dissipates over even a moderate distance and a snake has such a small diameter and short length compared to most drains that it will either not clean the sides of the pipe or reach the obstructed portion. A larger sized or longer snake often will not easily follow the turns of the pipes to reach the obstructed portion. Chemicals are most effective when used for blockages of organic material close to the drain opening, but are usually either ineffective or potentially more dangerous when used in sufficient quantities necessary to reach an obstruction far from the drain.
Various forms of specialty devices have been long known in the art for this purpose but all have some disadvantages. Many require special fittings and/or are expensive to manufacture. Few take advantage of the readily available water under pressure from a typical household faucet. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,283,780 to Ahern shows a low pressure dispenser of cleaning solutions having a long flexible tube with a brush on the end for cleaning a drain but it does not use a pressurized spray and cannot unclog a stopped drain. U.S. Pat. No. 2,315,673 to Taylor shows a side discharge nozzle on the end of a long flexible metal tube which apparently may be connected to a water faucet for cleaning drains but it does not appear useful for unclogging blocked pipes where the blockage is distant from the drain opening. More recently, U.S. Pat. No. 4,321,712 to Dixon teaches the use of a short, rigid connection for introducing cleaning or degreasing fluid under pressure near the beginning or the trap of a clogged drain. It does not spray the fluid deep inside the drain near the site of the stoppage, unless the blockage happens to be in or near the trap. None of the foregoing have any means for centering or guiding the cleaning tube in a pipe.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved device, and methods of making and using same, for cleaning and/or unclogging drain pipes which is easy to use and inexpensive to manufacture. It is a further object to provide a drain cleaning device which utilizes readily available household water pressure to effectuate the removal of the blockage or obstruction in the drain conduit.